Chapter Seven: Fisk
Michael was in Havenport.
How could this have happened? I abandoned him in Tallowsport, and I had not looked back once. While I had clearly left behind a trail since Pierce had found me so easily, I highly doubted that Michael had followed me. Not when so much time had passed since our departure. Not when he surely hated me more than any other person in the realm.
But despite all these things, Michael was in Havenport.
I had to talk to him. I had to tell him how sorry I was.
I used to pride myself in rational thought, yet as soon as these words entered my mind, I was already 'stumbling' into the fruit stand. It was stupid and rash and basically everything I used to scold Michael for, but I was already in the process before logic could catch up with my instincts. Pears and apples scattered across the market, and the food seller sounded as if he would have a heart attack as he sputtered out curses and demands for compensations, but I barely noticed.
I muttered apologies and scooped up fallen fruit as I made my way over to Michael as casually as I possibly could while blood roared in my ears. My hands shook as I knelt down where Michael was already picking up pears like the noble knight he was.
"I'm so sorry."
The words weren't much, but they were all I could manage under these conditions. Michael lifted his head, and our eyes met, and I knew he understood the message.
I'm so sorry… for everything.
Of course, I had forgotten how Michael couldn't be subtle to save his life. He started to open his mouth, and I widened my eyes in a clear message of silence. My heart beat frantically in anticipation, but thankfully, he stopped what he was saying. Now new pain drummed in my heart, for Michael could never hide his emotions either, and I could only imagine what I looked like to render that kind of anger and pity in his eyes.
My humiliation only grew worse when Pierce struck me, and I nearly fell. Jack had taught me to never show true weakness, but instead a reflection of whatever weakness would further my con. This wasn't a con, at least not in the nature we took part in, but it didn't matter anyway. I did not have the energy or strength of will to fight the pain that likely showed on my face.
I barely heard what Pierce was saying, but I understood his meaning quite well. Then he shoved me again, and two guards stepped forward to take hold of my arms, and my stomach turned unpleasantly. I was thankful I didn't have to see Michael's expression as they marched me away. It hurt enough to know that any image he once had of me was now deteriorating away. I must have looked so weak, pathetic, disgusting…
Was it worth it?
I wondered this as my guards tightened their hold on my arms and marched me to Pierce's mansion. Their fingers curled into my flesh, and I knew there would be bruises. However, that would clearly be the least of my problems judging by the expression on Pierce's face. He looked as if he wanted to beat me within an inch of death with his bare hands, and I wasn't completely confident that he wouldn't.
He moved slightly ahead of the rest of us, and in the growing darkness, his tall and lithe form looked like a grim reaper on the way to steal souls. His back hunched forward in his hurry to reach his household, and fear plagued my heart when I considered why.
My body trembled, and I could not even blame the night air, for the nearby waters made the atmosphere humid and sticky. I knew what was coming. I knew very well what awaited me in that basement. My fate was bad enough when I didn't provide a clear map to Jack's whereabouts, but after the incident with the fruit stand, I'd be lucky to ever see the light of day again.
Was it worth it? Yes. Even knowing the consequences, I was glad that I could tell Michael I was sorry. I didn't know why, but I was lucky to have the chance.
We reached the large mansion, and with a sharp nod of Pierce's head, the guards pulled me past the fine décor and into the kitchen. One jerked open the door, and the other practically pushed me down the steps, his hand still wrapped tightly around my arm. When we reached the bottom, the guard threw me against the stone wall and began chaining my wrists above my head. My pulse beat in a rapid and unsteady rhythm at returning to the familiar position though I had not expected any less.
Then the situation took a turn I had not anticipated. The hired hand pulled out a small pill from his trousers pocket, the kind high-class herbalists use when they need to make their herbs more susceptible to travel. I struggled as hard as I could, but he forced my jaw open and held my nose until I swallowed it. The pill slid down my throat like a death sentence.
When he finished, the brute ascended the steps, and they both shut the door behind them. Neither had thought to light the lamp, so I was in complete and total darkness. Cold started to leech through my clothes, skin, and into my very blood. Despair threatened to follow.
Was it poison? Somehow, I doubted it. Though I knew Pierce would kill me if I no longer proved useful, a quick and easy death didn't seem like his style. He'd beat me to death before he'd waste precious herbs on me. My body felt weak and tired, but that was not the pill's effects. My thoughts still seemed rational though I supposed I wasn't the best judge of that. Either way, I would discover the pill's purpose soon enough.
I leaned back against the damp stone wall and tried not to think, but after what I had witnessed in one day, this proved impossible.
Michael was in Havenport. As for Jack, I doubted he stowed away on a ship. He always said circumstances around ports and ships were too unsteady to involve them in a con. However, Peko's testimony about the multiple herbalists seemed promising. If they really were sending carts of herbs out to other town on a regular basis… Michael was in Havenport. No, focus, the carts. Jack could have sneaked away on one of those. Maybe even paid one off to keep quiet. This was more his style, even likely. Michael was in Havenport.
As much as I hated myself for it, a hope began to rise unbidden in my chest. I should not have dared think such a thing, but the selfish thought continued to cut ruthlessly through my musings. Michael was in Havenport. Michael could help me.
I did not deserve his help, not after I left him. I still felt like I did the right thing to separate myself from him, for I had my reasons then. Nevertheless, that meant I could not ask for his help now. He had no obligation toward me whatsoever. I would have to figure my way out on my own.
Still, I knew how hopelessly noble he was, and there was no way Michael would leave me behind, not after what he had just witnessed. Then again… perhaps he would. He likely hated me for abandoning him so cruelly… But he wouldn't let Pierce remain at large when he was clearly up to something dirty and underhanded. Michael would at least turn Pierce in to the authorities, and then I would be freed in the process. Was I the worst kind of person for hoping for such a thing? Did I truly care?
My thoughts started to lose their proper shapes, becoming flimsy and lucid. I wondered vaguely why Michael was in Havenport in the first place. Had he gotten lost? Surely, he would not have searched for me…
Perhaps it was the darkness playing with my mind now. I started to imagine monsters in the corners, and I had not dreamed of those for some years. I shifted my hands, and the rattle of chains seemed to echo in the torture chamber.
It suddenly occurred to me that if I died here, my sisters might never realize. Perhaps that was best. They would go on with their lives as they always had… without a single thought of me… or my fate… never knowing… where I… ended up…
I was drifting. Or falling. I didn't know anymore.
…
My eyes felt heavy and raw as I opened them, and pain jolted through my joints. I tried to lift my arms, but they weighed more than I remembered, and I heard metal rattling. I thought it was a dream at first, a nightmare. I wanted it to be a nightmare.
I was on the table again, but this time my wrists and ankles were chained at the four corners. While my trousers remained, my shirt was gone. My chest looked pale, small, vulnerable in the dim lighting. As I turned my head in an attempt to better assess the situation, a groan escaped my lips. The darkness, broken only by a faraway lantern, rendered my sight pathetic, but I could smell the acrid, sooty scent of smoke.
"I am afraid your time is almost up," a voice hissed. Only Pierce could sound like the very incarnation of evil.
"I've only had one day," I pleaded. My voice cracked, and it sounded raspier than I expected. How long had I been unconscious?
I heard footsteps, and I knew he was coming closer, but I could only see a glimpse of his shadow. My skin crawled. "One of my clients has already informed me that he will no longer be needing my services. What do you think that means, Master Fisk?"
Fear made it hard to think, but the thought of what he might do if I didn't answer motivated me. "He… doesn't need what you used to sell him. Jack stole it… and is selling it to your clients instead?" I managed.
"The potion, you idiot!" Pierce exploded. His voice was right at my head, and I flinched, pulling on the chains. "Or rather… the formula for the potion. I was the only one in the United Realm with the formula, and I sold it to the herbalists for a specialized fee. The herbalists distributed it to the working class… I funded this entire port! And what kind of thanks do I get? Any loyalty at all? No! The moment they can, the rats abandon me and try to make a few brass fracts for themselves…"
I used to call Michael a lunatic, and I still stood by that sentiment. But this… this was true insanity. Madness born from greed and delusions of superiority.
It took a moment to weed through his ramblings, but a clear picture started to form in my mind. All the herbalists in town… Pierce sold a certain potion to them, a potion only he knew the formula for. Then the herbalists distributed the potion to the rest of the town, and somehow, this was the source of Havenport's wealth. Jack must have stolen the formula…
But why would Jack sell the formula in a town where there was already a provider? That was a sure way to get caught, and he wasn't stupid enough to stay in Havenport. Then again…
"Only one herbalist has dropped your services?" I questioned tentatively. I avoided the insane with everything in my power, but chained in place, I had little choice.
"One is enough! Perhaps the others are too terrified of me as they should be, but it's only a matter of time. Damn Bannister… This is all his fault. When I find him…"
I could imagine what Pierce would do if he ever found Jack, and though his words chilled me to the bone, they had accomplished my purpose. Only one herbalist dropped Pierce, so Jack had only given the formula to one herbalist… Perhaps as payment for safe passage in one of the carts to another town? If I had the ability to talk to him, I was sure I could find out where Jack had gone.
I… I had the power to end this. If I told him now, Pierce would release me… But could I sacrifice Jack? No, no, I wouldn't do that. I could still get out of this situation on my own power alone.
"Of course, none of this is significant at the moment. We have more immediate matters to take care of, don't we?"
Pierce's tone suddenly shifted from wild and chaotic to cold and collected, and I almost yearned for the former. Light suddenly flooded the room as one of the men-at-arms lit five lanterns all surrounding the table. Pierce stood right next to me, and he held a glass bottle and an unlit torch.
"I don't know what you mean," I stammered. "I would think the most significant matter would be your threatened economy."
"Oh, it is," Pierce assured me. "And right now, the most immediate threat to my economy is you."
I gaped, my mouth wide open, and it took a few moments before I could manage to say anything. "What do you mean? I am literally chained in your basement! How could I possibly threaten you? You brought me here to help you!"
"And that is why you have been such a disappointment," Pierce mourned. He uncorked the bottle and poured a slick, slimy liquid across my chest. My muscles tensed at the unfamiliar feeling, and cold apprehension slithered down my neck. I recognized the scent. Oil.
I shifted in my chains uneasily, and I could not have hidden the fear on my face if I tried.
Pierce lit his torch, and the flames cast demonic hues on his features. "In the market today," Pierce opened casually as if he was starting a conversation rather than torture. "Did you happen to recognize anyone? I don't suppose… you tried to contact anyone?"
"What?" I exclaimed. My voice cracked. "I don't know a soul in this town! Besides, even if I did, everyone here is your man!"
"Hmm… that's true," Pierce agreed. I started to relax, but then his eyes flashed. "However, I don't take well to any form of lying." He lowered the torch, and my eyes widened in horror. I struggled with all my power, but the chains could not be broken. Still, I fought and twisted and pushed as far from the torch as I could. Pierce only grinned as he continued his path to my flesh. As soon as the flames touched the oil, my entire chest erupted into an inferno.
The heat consumed me immediately, and I panted heavily, and yet… While my flesh seemed to be cooking, it was not curling into a grotesque burn. My eyes flickered up to Pierce's face who watched me with satisfaction.
"Right now, the fire only burns the oil. You may experience discomfort but not true pain. However… once the oil is burned up, the fire resorts to what's left. Do you understand?"
He was going to burn me alive. The knowledge entered my mind with cold clarity, and it suddenly struck me how very helpless I was. Chain wrapped around my wrist… Trapped in a basement… There was literally nothing I could do to get out of this situation.
I used to think I was an independent person, always working on my own. Only then did I realize how wrong I was. Starting out, my confidence in my cons came from one person: Jack. He taught me the right techniques, showed me how… He gave me a way of life. Even when he taught me not to rely on anyone, I still relied on him. Then he showed me the consequences of that mistake as well.
I thought I had learned, but Michael was hardly any different. We got into pretty tight situations, and while I had been afraid at the time, deep down I knew we could figure it out together. He would never give up on a friend.
Now…
In one swift night at Tallowsport, I scared Jack away for good, and I ensured that Michael would hate me for eternity. Even if Michael was in Havenport, he would bring down Pierce because that's the kind of man he was, but it would be too late to me.
Sweat beaded on my forehead and arms, and even though the pain wasn't intense enough for the oil to be completely burned, I could feel the sting of the flames. Panic rose up in my heart, but moving would only make the fire worse.
"Now Nonopherian, don't you have something to tell me?" Pierce taunted. He lifted a bucket of what could only be water so that I could see. The immediate alternation of fire and cold water would send my body into shock, but it would at least save me from burning alive. There was still a way I could save myself…
Michael Sevenson! He'll bring you down if you don't capture him now!
It would be so easy. I could prove that I was still my own person, and I only had to open my mouth and form those words… But who was I fooling? I would never do it.
I kept my lips pressed tight together even as the first agonizing flames started to brush against my bare skin. I resigned myself to my fate.
